Fruit orchards and woody semi-natural habitat provide complementary resources for pollinators in agricultural landscapes

AbstractIn the intensively farmed, homogenous agricultural landscape of the North China Plain, family graveyards form distinct cultural landscape features. In addition to their cultural value, these graveyards represent semi-natural habitat islands whose potential roles in biodiversity conservation and ecological functioning has remained poorly understood. In this study, we investigated plant species richness on 199 family graveyards of different ages and sizes. In accordance with biogeography theory, both overall and insect-pollinated plant species richness increased with area and age of graveyards. Even small graveyards show a strong potential for conserving local plant richness, and a mosaic of both large and small family graveyards could play an important role in the conservation of farmland biodiversity and related ecosystem functions. The launch of agri-environmental measures that conserve and create semi-natural habitats, in turn benefitting agricultural biodiversity and ecological functioning, has proven difficult in China due to the shortage of dispensable arable land. Given the great value of family graveyards as semi-natural habitats reflected in our study, we propose to focus preliminary efforts on conserving these landscape features as existing, widespread and culturally important semi-natural habitat islands. This would represent an effective, complementary policy to a subsequent re-establishment of other semi-natural habitats for the conservation of biodiversity and ecological functioning in agricultural landscapes.

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Barking up the right tree: comparative use of arboreal and terrestrial artificial refuges to survey reptiles in temperate eucalypt woodlands

Wildlife Research ◽

10.1071/wr17117 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 45 (2) ◽

pp. 185 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Damian R. Michael ◽

Daniel Florance ◽

Mason Crane ◽

Wade Blanchard ◽

David B. Lindenmayer

Keyword(s):

Survey Methods ◽

Natural Habitat ◽

Basal Area ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Mature Trees ◽

Detection Rates ◽

Closed Cell ◽

Eastern Australia ◽

Non Destructive ◽

Cell Foam

Context Artificial refuges (cover boards) are a popular method to survey and monitor herpetofauna worldwide. However, one limitation of using artificial refuges in terrestrial environments is the low detection rates of arboreal species. Furthermore, destructive search techniques can damage critical microhabitat such as exfoliating rock or flaking bark of mature trees. Aim We tested a non-destructive, passive method of sampling arboreal reptiles in fragmented agricultural landscapes in south-eastern Australia. Methods We installed 84 artificial bark refuges consisting of strips of non-toxic, closed-cell foam attached to eucalypt trees in 13 patches of remnant vegetation. We used Bayesian statistics to compare differences in detection rates among artificial bark refuges, terrestrial artificial refuges and active searches of natural habitat over a 4-year period. Key results Active searches combined with terrestrial artificial refuges detected the highest number of reptile species, including several cryptic fossorial species. Artificial bark refuges detected, on average, 132 times more individuals of the arboreal southern marbled gecko, Christinus marmoratus, than did terrestrial refuges. Gecko abundance patterns were related to tree characteristics such as tree size, bark thickness and stand basal area, as well as survey year. Conclusions Traditional survey methods such as terrestrial cover boards, in combination with active searches of natural habitat, may significantly underestimate counts for arboreal gecko species. Implications Artificial bark refuges provide a cost-effective, non-destructive and durable method for surveying and monitoring arboreal reptiles in woodland environments over short to medium time frames. Foil-backed, closed-cell foam has broad application for use in spatial capture–recapture studies and long-term monitoring of arboreal reptiles. This method also may be effective for procuring records of threatened arboreal geckos or as a solution for providing temporary habitat in ecological restoration projects.

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Natural habitat fragments obscured the distance effect on maintaining the diversity of insect pollinators and crop productivity in tropical agricultural landscapes

Heliyon ◽

10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e01425 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 5 (3) ◽

pp. e01425 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Damayanti Buchori ◽

Akhmad Rizali ◽

Anik Larasati ◽

Purnama Hidayat ◽

Hien Ngo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Natural Habitat ◽

Distance Effect ◽

Crop Productivity ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Insect Pollinators

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Effects of distance from semi-natural habitat on fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, J. E. Smith) and its potential natural enemies in Ghana

Bulletin of Entomological Research ◽

10.1017/s0007485321000894 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-11

Author(s):

Matthew W. Jordon ◽

Talya D. Hackett ◽

Fred Aboagye-Antwi ◽

Vincent Y. Eziah ◽

Owen T. Lewis

Keyword(s):

Natural Enemies ◽

Spodoptera Frugiperda ◽

Natural Habitat ◽

Fall Armyworm ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Leaf Damage ◽

Crop Damage ◽

Biological Pest Control ◽

Sub Saharan

Abstract Insect crop pests are a major threat to food security in sub-Saharan Africa. Configuration of semi-natural habitat within agricultural landscapes has the potential to enhance biological pest control, helping to maintain yields whilst minimising the negative effects of pesticide use. Fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, J. E. Smith) is an increasingly important pest of maize in sub-Saharan Africa, with reports of yield loss between 12 and 45%. We investigated the patterns of fall armyworm leaf damage in maize crops in Ghana, and used pitfall traps and dummy caterpillars to assess the spatial distribution of potential fall armyworm predators. Crop damage from fall armyworm at our study sites increased significantly with distance from the field edge, by up to 4% per m. We found evidence that Araneae activity, richness and diversity correspondingly decreased with distance from semi-natural habitat, although Hymenoptera richness and diversity increased. Our preliminary findings suggest that modifying field configuration to increase the proximity of maize to semi-natural habitat may reduce fall armyworm damage and increase natural enemy activity within crops. Further research is required to determine the level of fall armyworm suppression achievable through natural enemies, and how effectively this could safeguard yields.

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Dryland Organic Farming Partially Offsets Negative Effects of Highly Simplified Agricultural Landscapes on Forbs, Bees, and Bee–Flower Networks

Environmental Entomology ◽

10.1093/ee/nvz056 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 48 (4) ◽

pp. 826-835 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Subodh Adhikari ◽

Laura A Burkle ◽

Kevin M O’Neill ◽

David K Weaver ◽

Casey M Delphia ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Farming ◽

Community Composition ◽

Natural Habitat ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Floral Resources ◽

Conventional Farming ◽

No Till ◽

Bee Diversity ◽

Bee Abundance

AbstractIndustrialized farming practices result in simplified agricultural landscapes, reduced biodiversity, and degraded species-interaction networks. Thus far, most research assessing the combined effects of farming systems and landscape complexity on beneficial insects has been conducted in relatively diversified and mesic systems and may not represent the large-scale, monoculture-based dryland agriculture that dominates many regions worldwide. Specifically, the effects of farming systems on forbs, bees, and their interactions are poorly understood in highly simplified dryland landscapes such as those in the Northern Great Plains, United States, an area globally important for conventional and organic small grain, pulse, forage, and oilseed production. During a 3-yr (2013–2015) study, we assessed 1) the effects of dryland no-till conventional and tilled organic farming on forbs, bees, and bee–flower networks and 2) the relationship between natural habitat and bee abundance. Flower density and richness were greater in tilled organic fields than in no-till conventional fields, and forb community composition differed between farming systems. We observed high bee diversity (109 taxa) in this highly simplified landscape, and bee abundance, richness, and community composition were similar between systems. Compared with tilled organic fields, bee–flower interactions in no-till conventional fields were poorly connected, suggesting these systems maintain relatively impoverished plant-pollinator networks. Natural habitat (11% of the landscape) did not affect small-bodied bee abundance in either farming system but positively affected large-bodied bees within 2,000 m of crop-field centers. In highly simplified agricultural landscapes, dryland organic farming and no-till conventional farming together support relatively high bee diversity, presumably because dryland organic farming enhances floral resources and bee–flower networks, and no-till management in conventional farming provides undisturbed ground-nesting habitats for wild bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea).

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Assessing the bird guild patterns in heterogeneous land use types around Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, India

Ecological Processes ◽

10.1186/s13717-020-00250-9 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Asha Sohil ◽

Neeraj Sharma

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Natural Habitat ◽

Habitat Preferences ◽

Ecological Integrity ◽

Bird Species ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Conservation Strategies ◽

Feeding Guilds ◽

Guild Structure ◽

Jammu And Kashmir

Abstract Land-use sprawl in the Himalayas has caused the conversion of natural habitat into human-modified habitats, thus degrading ecosystem health. Adaptation of birds to changing physical environment can be well understood by analyzing their habitat preferences, and foraging dynamics explored to a limited extent in the Himalayan region, as yet. To achieve a comprehensive understanding of avian guild structure, we used multivariate statistical techniques to classify bird species according to their similarities in foraging patterns and habitat preferences. Observations based on habitat and diet affinities accounted for rich avian diversity with a total of 208 bird species (about 15% of country’s avifauna) recorded from six different sites during 1 year survey. Unweighted pair-group average cluster analysis performed on the families revealed ten feeding and fifteen habitat guilds among 63 bird families observed. Subtropical forests harbored more species followed by urban forests and agricultural landscapes. Insectivorous and omnivorous outnumbered other feeding guilds in the study area. Bird assemblages were richer in protected areas and semi-disturbed landscapes and did not show significant variation between the seasons. Results of the study revealed that different functional groups of birds behaved differently, primarily induced by choice of food. The site heterogeneity favored avifaunal persistence by providing favorable foraging, roosting, and nesting opportunities to birds. Composition of avian guilds indicated level of intactness and ecological integrity of ecosystems studied. This outcome thus sets the background for long-term analysis of bird-habitat relationship and their foraging dynamics. The study has the relevance for decision-makers to integrate avian guild structure as an essential ingredient in formulating conservation strategies.

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Contributions of Hedgerows to People: A Global Meta-Analysis

Frontiers in Conservation Science ◽

10.3389/fcosc.2021.789612 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2 ◽

Author(s):

David García de León ◽

José M. Rey Benayas ◽

Enrique Andivia

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Natural Habitat ◽

Global Scale ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Agricultural Fields ◽

Climate Type ◽

Scale Field ◽

Meta Analyses ◽

Provisioning Services

Hedgerows are linear landscape features of woody vegetation usually located around agricultural fields. An increasing number of studies have addressed the effects of hedgerows on biodiversity and ecosystem services. This study is aimed to synthesize these effects and compare the levels of biodiversity and ecosystem services in farmland with hedgerows and (1) farmland without hedgerows and (2) nearby natural habitat at the global scale. We hypothesized that farmland with hedgerows (1) enhances biodiversity and ecosystem services as compared to farmland without hedgerows but (2) supports lower levels of biodiversity and ecosystem services than natural habitat. Our systematic literature review retained 835 observations from 170 primary studies, which were analyzed following the standard methodology in meta-analyses. Our results partially support both hypotheses. Farmland with hedgerows exhibited higher levels of biodiversity and provisioning services than farmland without hedgerows (H1). Farmland with hedgerows provided similar levels of biodiversity (edge effects) but lower levels of ecosystem services than natural habitat (H2). The effects of hedgerows on biodiversity and ecosystem services depended on control ecosystem type (grassland/meadow or forest/woodland) but were largely independent of climate type (temperate or tropical) and the focus of spatial scale (field or landscape). In conclusion, conservation and restoration of hedgerows contribute to people in several ways by enhancing biodiversity and multifunctionality in agricultural landscapes.

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Capabilities of high resolution satellite radar for the detection of semi-natural habitat structures and grasslands in agricultural landscapes

Ecological Informatics ◽

10.1016/j.ecoinf.2012.10.004 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 13 ◽

pp. 9-16 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

D. Bargiel

Keyword(s):

High Resolution ◽

Natural Habitat ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Satellite Radar

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Reconciling biodiversity conservation, food production and farmers’ demand

10.1101/485607 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Daniel Montoya ◽

Sabrina Gaba ◽

Claire de Mazancourt ◽

Vincent Bretagnolle ◽

Michel Loreau

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Global Change ◽

Biodiversity Conservation ◽

Food Production ◽

Crop Production ◽

Natural Habitat ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Demographic Stochasticity ◽

Trade Offs ◽

Intensively Managed

AbstractAgricultural management should consider multiple services and stakeholders. Yet, it remains unclear how to guarantee the provision of ecosystem services that reaches stakeholders’ demands, especially considering the observed biodiversity decline and the current global change predictions that may affect food security. Here, we use a model to examine how landscape composition – fraction of semi-natural habitat (SNH) – affects biodiversity and crop production services in intensively-managed agricultural systems. We analyse three groups of stakeholders assumed to value different ecosystem services most – individual farmers (crop yield per area), agricultural unions (landscape production) and conservationists (biodiversity). We find that trade-offs among stakeholders’ demands strongly depend on the degree of pollination dependence of crops, the strength of environmental and demographic stochasticity, and the relative amount of an ecosystem service demanded by each stakeholder, i.e. function thresholds. Intermediate amounts of SNH can allow for the delivery of relatively high levels of the three ecosystem services. Our analysis further suggests that the current levels of SNH protection lie below these intermediate amounts of SNH in intensively-managed agricultural landscapes. Given the worldwide trends in agriculture and global change, these results suggest ways of managing landscapes to reconcile the demands of several actors and ensure for biodiversity conservation and food production.

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Effects of landscape complexity on pollinators are moderated by pollinators' association with mass-flowering crops

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2019.0387 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 286 (1900) ◽

pp. 20190387 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Thijs P. M. Fijen ◽

Jeroen A. Scheper ◽

Bastiaen Boekelo ◽

Ivo Raemakers ◽

David Kleijn

Keyword(s):

Natural Habitat ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Community Size ◽

Natural Habitats ◽

Pollinator Decline ◽

Mass Flowering ◽

Landscape Complexity ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Pollinator Community ◽

Core Components

Conserving and restoring semi-natural habitat, i.e. enhancing landscape complexity, is one of the main strategies to mitigate pollinator decline in agricultural landscapes. However, we still have limited understanding of how landscape complexity shapes pollinator communities in both crop and non-crop habitat, and whether pollinator responses to landscape complexity vary with their association with mass-flowering crops. Here, we surveyed pollinator communities on mass-flowering leek crops and in nearby semi-natural habitat in landscapes of varying complexity. Surveys were done before and during crop bloom and distinguished between pollinators that visit the crop frequently (dominant), occasionally (opportunistic), or not at all (non-crop). Forty-seven per cent of the species in the wider landscape were also observed on leek flowers. Crop pollinator richness increased with local pollinator community size and increasing landscape complexity, but relationships were stronger for opportunistic than for dominant crop pollinators. Relationships between pollinator richness in semi-natural habitats and landscape complexity differed between groups with the most pronounced positive effects on non-crop pollinators. Our results indicate that while dominant crop pollinators are core components of crop pollinator communities in all agricultural landscapes, opportunistic crop pollinators largely determine species-richness responses and complex landscapes are local hotspots for both biodiversity conservation and potential ecosystem service provision.

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